The Unified Water Infrastructure Plan is now posted
This page provides information on how to incorporate your projects, the plan and legislation.
Please Note:
Projects needing funding within the next year should use the current application process in addition to submitting the project using the portal. The first UWIP funding process is not expected to be fully implemented until July 1, 2026 (beginning of fiscal year 2027). Please visit the Water Resources Board funding page which includes distinctive application deadlines for more immediate funding. Or, these pages for immediate Drinking Water Board funding application deadlines or Water Quality Board funding opportunities.
Summary
- The Utah Project Portal is the official platform for submitting and managing projects under the UWIP process. The portal will be open year round, but May 1 each year is the cutoff date for projects to be incorporated in the upcoming agency plan project list.
- Water infrastructure projects must be on the list to qualify for state funding assistance in most situations.
- 2024 legislation created the Water Infrastructure Fund and the Unified Water Infrastructure Plan. See this page for background on this new framework and comments from the public and Utah Watersheds Council.
How to participate
One goal of the Unified Water Infrastructure Plan (UWIP) is to encourage proactive water infrastructure planning. This requires local level participation all across the state among various entity types. If your entity plans to, or potentially may, seek state funding assistance please submit all projects for the next 20 years.
Where? The Utah Project Portal is the official platform for entities to manage their projects to be incorporated in the UWIP. Entities can establish accounts, confirm or edit existing projects (if previously submitted) and add new projects.
When? The portal will be open year-round for account creation and project management. But there will be a cutoff date on May 1 each year so that projects can be prioritized within the relevant agency and incorporated into the upcoming agency plan.
Who? Qualified entities seeking state funding assistance. Entities include (but are not limited to) towns, cities, counties, water conservancy districts, irrigation companies and other public water suppliers. Entity accounts need to be the direct project sponsor, not the engineer or support team.
What? Project types are agriculture off-farm, drinking water, reuse, secondary, stormwater/flood control, wastewater, water supply-raw water source development and water supply-watershed protection. Funds can be utilized to create planning documents like reserve studies and capital asset management plans. Entities are encouraged to enter projects that may seek state funding for the next 20 years.
Why? Having a project on the list in the UWIP (and agency plans) is essentially a pre-application step to qualify for most state funds.
Requirements and exceptions: state code lists certain requirements and exceptions for water infrastructure fund money involved in this process. Requirements include (but are not limited to) the completion of relevant capital asset management plans and a reserve study (73-10g-605). Exceptions include (but are not limited to) small projects and emergencies. Excluded from this process (as defined in 73-10g-601) are funds restricted by federal law, funds dispersed from the Water Resources Revolving Construction Fund (dam safety projects and typically irrigation projects <$1 million) and funds dispersed from the Water Infrastructure Restricted Account.
Unified Water Infrastructure Plan
The UWIP is a comprehensive prioritized list of water infrastructure projects that will potentially need state financial assistance. State code directs that the UWIP must describe water infrastructure projects needed to maintain the reliable supply of safe and clean water within the state for the next 20 years (73-10g-602). The plan will improve funding coordination by determining how funds should be distributed between the agencies and when additional funds need to be requested from the state Legislature. The UWIP will encourage long term water infrastructure planning at a statewide and local level.
This plan will be created, administered and updated (as needed, but at a minimum every four years) by the Water Development Coordinating Council. The agencies included in the council provide financial assistance for a large portion of water infrastructure projects in the state. The UWIP will be based primarily on agency plans submitted by the relevant agencies (73-10g-602). The relevant agencies and their respective boards include:
- Division of Water Resources through the Board of Water Resources
- Division of Drinking Water through the Drinking Water Board
- Division of Water Quality through the Water Quality Board
All water infrastructure entities that currently expect to request funds from the relevant agencies will need to have their projects included in the UWIP to receive consideration for future funding.
The council adopted the UWIP by March 1, 2026 as required by statute.
Appendices
Appendix B: Agency Plans
*If printing, select “Fit to Printable Area.” Some pages are oversized.
Comments on the draft plan
The Water Development Coordinating Council gathered public comment on the draft funding prioritization process (73-10g-603) and provided a draft UWIP to the Utah Watersheds Council for review (73-10g-602). All comments and meetings can be viewed below.
UWIP Prioritization Process Public Meetings
City | Date and Time | Location | Virtual Link | Agenda and Minutes |
Provo | Tuesday, Oct. 14 5-6:30 p.m. | Utah County Administration Building Commission Chambers (Room 1400) 100 E Center St. Provo, UT 84606 | ||
Duchesne | Thursday, Oct. 16 5-6:30 p.m. | Duchesne County Administration Building Commission Chambers 734 N Center St. Duchesne, UT 84021 | ||
Brigham City | Tuesday, Oct. 21 5-6:30 p.m. | Box Elder Historic County Courthouse Commission Chambers 1 S Main St. Brigham City, UT 84302 | ||
Cedar City | Monday, Oct. 27 5-6:30 p.m. | Cedar City Council Chambers 10 N Main St. Cedar City, UT 84720 |
Utah’s new Water Infrastructure Fund
The Utah Legislature passed HB 280 in 2024 and a modification bill, HB 285, in 2025. Among other things, this legislation created the Water Infrastructure Fund, a new account to fund water infrastructure projects in the state of Utah. The money in the Water Infrastructure Fund will be distributed to the relevant agencies by the Water Development Coordinating Council based on the UWIP. While the UWIP is estimating the future need, the Water Infrastructure Fund is the potential funding mechanism to meet the requested needs. Implementation of this new funding account can be broken into two studies authorized by the Legislature:
- Integration of Existing Funds Study – The first study was completed in October of 2024 to analyze and recommend consolidation of existing funds available for water infrastructure projects. This study provides a more detailed outline of funding approach changes envisioned by HB 280 and led to modifications in HB 285.
- Infrastructure Fee Study – The second study was completed in October 2025 and investigates whether to impose a new fee to fund water infrastructure projects. The study considers current funding sources and mechanisms, where shortfalls exist, how a new fee might be assessed and how the revenue might be equitably distributed statewide. Any future fees must be approved by the Legislature. Currently, there is no fee or tax that has been approved that would fund the Water Infrastructure Fund.
HB 280 includes several milestones that are to be accomplished to implement the new Water Infrastructure Fund and UWIP before the state water plan is published at the end of 2026. The following timeline shows the schedule and tasks that were included in the bill.
Prioritization process rulemaking
HB 280 directs the council to establish rules outlining various items regarding the UWIP prioritization process. These rules will include:
- Emergency and small project exclusion
- The project prioritization process
- Setting funding levels
- Transferring money out of the Water Infrastructure Fund
- Adopting the UWIP
- Capital asset management plan
The Utah Office of Administrative Rules requires rulemaking agencies to follow a specific rule filing timeline and public comment period. The public can submit comments during the public comment period via email through the Administrative Rule Search, selecting the ‘Proposed Rules’ filter and pathing to Water Resources (653) within the Natural Resources Agency tab.
If you have questions or need further information, please email: UWIPprojects@utah.gov
